During the concrete curing process, chemical changes occur in the presence of water which ensure that the hardened concrete will be water-tight and durable. These chemical changes occur over a considerable period of time requiring that the concrete be kept wet during the curing period. The heat radiating from the concrete during the curing process evaporates the moisture in the concrete, inhibiting the chemical hardening process and compromising the strength and durability of the cured concrete. It is therefore necessary to contain the heat and moisture in the concrete long enough to permit the curing process to be sufficiently completed. The need for heat and moisture retention increases during cold weather applications. One prior art approach to solve this problem is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,956 to Handwerker titled "Heat Reflective Blanket" which is directed to a flexible, multilayer heat reflective blanket.
When curing concrete wall structures, the curing blanket must be disposed vertically, in an orientation parallel to the wall surface being cured. When a heat retaining blanket is disposed in this vertical orientation, the internal insulating media have a tendency to settle toward the bottom of the blanket. This tendency to settle is exacerbated by windy conditions or rough handling that might tend to jostle the blanket.
To overcome this settling tendency, blankets of the prior art often employ a plurality of fasteners to secure the internal insulating media to exterior portions of the heat retaining blanket. Although this process is adequate to secure the insulating media in place, the fasteners add to the material cost of the reflecting blanket and time (and possible machinery) involved in inserting the fasteners adds to the labor cost in fabricating a heat retaining blanket, thus resulting in higher costs to the consumer.
In addition, the fasteners are subject to breakage under the conditions that generally obtain at a construction site. Breakage of the fasteners can lead to slippage of the internal insulating media, thus compromising the effectiveness of the blanket in curing concrete.
Accordingly, a need arises for an improved method for attaching the insulating media to the outer structure of the heat retaining blanket, and an improved blanket constructed in accordance with the method. The improved blanket should be relatively inexpensive to manufacture and should exhibit enhanced durability so that it will function dependably over an extended product lifetime in the construction environment.